1996 World Cup of Hockey
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The first '''World Cup of Hockey''' ([[World Cup of Hockey|WCH]]), or ''[[1996]] World Cup of Hockey'', replaced the [[Canada Cup (hockey)|Canada Cup]] as one of the premier championships for professional [[ice hockey]] (along with the Winter Olympic tournament, which professionals have competed in since 1998).
The first edition of the Cup featured eight teams divided into two groups. The European Group, whose games were all played in Europe, included the [[Czech Republic national ice hockey team|Czech Republic]], [[Finland national men's ice hockey team|Finland]], [[German national ice hockey team|Germany]], and [[Sweden national men's ice hockey team|Sweden]]. The North American Group played in North American cities and included [[Canadian national men's ice hockey team|Canada]], [[Russia national ice hockey team|Russia]], [[Slovakia national ice hockey team|Slovakia]], and the [[United States national men's ice hockey team|United States]].
After the teams played a three-game group stage, the top team in each group advanced to the semi-finals, while the second and third place teams played cross-over quarter-finals. The quarter-finals and semi-finals were single elimination games. The championship final was a best-of-three. All playoff games were played in North America.
In the biggest surprise of the tournament, Germany defeated Czech Republic 7-1 in the European Group, which eliminated the Czechs and sent the Germans into the quarter-finals. In the biggest game of the North American Group, USA defeated Canada 5-3 to finish first and get a bye to the semi-finals. In the semis, they defeated Russia 5-2, while Canada beat Sweden 3-2 on [[Theoren Fleury]]'s goal at 19:47 of the second overtime period, ending the longest game in international hockey history.
In the best-of-three final, Canada won the first game, in Philadelphia, 4-3 in overtime. Then the USA recorded a pair of 5-2 victories in Montreal to win the series. In the third and decisive game, the US received spectacular goaltending from tournament MVP [[Mike Richter]] and rallied from a 2-1 deficit in the third period.
==Rosters==
*see [[1996 World Cup of Hockey rosters]]
==Venues==
*[[General Motors Place]], [[Vancouver]]
*[[Scotiabank Place|Corel Centre]], [[Ottawa]]
*[[Bell Centre|Molson Centre]], [[Montreal]]
*[[Wachovia Center|CoreStates Center]], [[Philadelphia]]
*[[Madison Square Garden]], [[New York]]
*[[Globe Arena]], [[Stockholm]]
*[[Helsingin Jäähalli]], [[Helsinki]]
*[[Garmisch Olympia Stadion]], [[Garmisch]]
*[[T-Mobile Arena|Sportovní hala]], [[Prague]]
==Results==
===North American Pool===
{| border=1 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=0
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="120"|
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GP
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|W
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|L
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|T
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GF
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GA
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|Pts
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|USA}}
|3||3||0||0||19||8||'''6'''
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|CAN}}
|3||2||1||0||11||10||'''4'''
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|RUS}}
|3||1||2||0||12||14||'''2'''
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|SVK}}
|3||0||3||0||9||19||'''0'''
|}
====Scores====
*[[August 29]], [[Vancouver]]: Russia 3-5 Canada
*[[August 31]], [[Montreal]]: Slovakia 4-7 Russia
*August 31, [[Philadelphia]]: Canada 3-5 United States
*[[September 1]], [[Ottawa]]: Canada 3-2 Slovakia
*[[September 2]], [[New York City]]: Russia 2-5 United States
*[[September 3]], New York City : United States 9-3 Slovakia
===European Pool===
{| border=1 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=0
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="120"|
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GP
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|W
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|L
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|T
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GF
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GA
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|Pts
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|SWE}}
|3||3||0||0||14||3||'''6'''
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|FIN}}
|3||2||1||0||17||11||'''4'''
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|GER}}
|3||1||2||0||11||15||'''2'''
|- align=center
|align=left|{{ih|CZE}}
|3||0||3||0||4||17||'''0'''
|}
====Scores====
*[[August 26]], [[Stockholm]]: Germany 1-6 Sweden
*[[August 27]], [[Helsinki]]: Finland 7-3 Czech Republic
*[[August 28]], Helsinki: Germany 3-8 Finland
*August 29, [[Prague]]: Sweden 3-0 Czech Republic
*August 31, [[Garmisch]]: Czech Republic 1-7 Germany
*September 1, Stockholm: Finland 2-5 Sweden
===Quarterfinals===
*[[September 5]], Montreal: Germany 1-4 Canada
*[[September 6]], Ottawa: Russia 5-0 Finland
===Semifinals===
*[[September 7]], Philadelphia: Canada 3-2 Sweden (2OT)
*[[September 8]], Ottawa: Russia 2-5 United States
===Finals===
*[[September 10]], Philadelphia: Canada 4-3 United States (OT)
*[[September 12]], Montreal: United States 5-2 Canada
*[[September 14]], Montreal: Canada 2-5 United States
==Leading scorers==
{| border=1 cellpadding=5 cellspacing=0
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|Rk
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="120"|Player
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|GP
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|G
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|A
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|Pts
!bgcolor="#efefef" width="20"|PIM
|- align=center
|1
|align=left|{{flagicon|United States}} [[Brett Hull]]
|7||7||4||11||4
|- align=center
|2
|align=left|{{flagicon|United States}} [[John LeClair]]
|7||6||4||10||6
|- align=center
|3
|align=left|{{flagicon|Sweden}} [[Mats Sundin]]
|4||4||3||7||4
|- align=center
|4
|align=left|{{flagicon|United States}} [[Doug Weight]]
|7||3||4||7||12
|- align=center
|5
|align=left|{{flagicon|Canada}} [[Wayne Gretzky]]
|8||3||4||7||2
|- align=center
|6
|align=left|{{flagicon|United States}} [[Brian Leetch]]
|7||0||7||7||4
|- align=center
|7
|align=left|{{flagicon|Canada}} [[Paul Coffey]]
|7||0||7||7||12
|- align=center
|8
|align=left|{{flagicon|United States}} [[Keith Tkachuk]]
|7||5||1||6||44
|- align=center
|9
|align=left|{{flagicon|Canada}} [[Theoren Fleury]]
|8||4||2||6||8
|- align=center
|10
|align=left|{{flagicon|Russia}} [[Sergei Fedorov]]
|5||3||3||6||2
|- align=center
|}
*'''Leading Goaltender''': [[Curtis Joseph]], Canada (2.31 GAA)
*'''Tournament MVP''': [[Mike Richter]], USA
==All-star team==
*Goaltender: [[Mike Richter]], USA
*Defence: [[Calle Johansson]], Sweden; [[Chris Chelios]],USA
*Forwards: [[Brett Hull]], USA; [[Mats Sundin]], Sweden; [[John LeClair]], USA<br>
==See also==
* [[International Ice Hockey Federation]]
* [[National Hockey League]]
* [[Summit Series]]
* [[World Cup of Hockey]]
* [[List of international ice hockey competitions featuring NHL players]]
*[[2004 World Cup of Hockey]]
==External links==
* [http://InternationalHockeyFan.Com International Hockey Statistics Database]
[[Category:1996 World Cup of Hockey|*]]
[[Category:World Cup of Hockey]]
[[cs:Světový pohár v ledním hokeji 1996]]
[[de:World Cup of Hockey 1996]]
[[fr:Coupe du monde de hockey 1996]]
[[pl:Puchar Świata hokeja na lodzie 1996]]
[[fi:Jääkiekon maailmancup 1996]]
[[sv:World Cup i ishockey 1996]]